Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Haringey to be one of 12 areas to trial giving residents a greater say in Council spending
New steps were announced this week as part of a nationwide drive to put more power into the hands of local people. This comes ahead of legislation later this year to 'put communities in control'. Haringey Council is one of twelve pilot areas
Hazel Blears announced:
Twelve 'participatory budgeting' or 'community kitties' pilot areas, actively engaging with local people in how public money is spent. These pilot areas will now work with the help and guidance of the Participatory Budgeting unit, letting their communities choose from 'dragon's den' style pitches for council cash: Different local groups can make proposals for a portion of public budgets, and local people can consider which ones they feel will best meet the area's priorities and needs - such as recycling projects, health projects, local environmental issues or children's services.
A new 'asset transfer unit' will be led by the Development Trusts Association. The unit will offer an independent hub of advice for local people and authorities to help community groups take control of disused public buildings if they can prove they can put them to better use. Its advice will be available to people from all over England, and will draw on the experience of twenty buildings whose transfer has already been completed, or will be signed off within the next twelve months, with government support.
All of this puts more control into the hands of the community. It's clear that people want to be more involved in the decisions that affect their local area - Nearly three quarters of people feel they should be able to influence how council tax is spent, and over two fifths would personally like to be involved.
Click here for more.
Not a dicky bird about this from Haringey yet. Can anyone throw any light on how this will be implemenetd in our borough?
Hazel Blears announced:
Twelve 'participatory budgeting' or 'community kitties' pilot areas, actively engaging with local people in how public money is spent. These pilot areas will now work with the help and guidance of the Participatory Budgeting unit, letting their communities choose from 'dragon's den' style pitches for council cash: Different local groups can make proposals for a portion of public budgets, and local people can consider which ones they feel will best meet the area's priorities and needs - such as recycling projects, health projects, local environmental issues or children's services.
A new 'asset transfer unit' will be led by the Development Trusts Association. The unit will offer an independent hub of advice for local people and authorities to help community groups take control of disused public buildings if they can prove they can put them to better use. Its advice will be available to people from all over England, and will draw on the experience of twenty buildings whose transfer has already been completed, or will be signed off within the next twelve months, with government support.
All of this puts more control into the hands of the community. It's clear that people want to be more involved in the decisions that affect their local area - Nearly three quarters of people feel they should be able to influence how council tax is spent, and over two fifths would personally like to be involved.
Click here for more.
Not a dicky bird about this from Haringey yet. Can anyone throw any light on how this will be implemenetd in our borough?
Tags for Forum Posts: dclg, government papers
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Clive Carter on
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'Asset transfer' is a worthy initiative, but disused public buildings needs to be defined carefully. The notion is particularly relevant to Haringey because no Borough has more buildings on English Heritage's Buildings at Risk Register.
The Hornsey Town Hall, badly neglected by our delinquent council for many years, ought to qualify. It is of no interest to the council and their dog-in-the-manger attitude has meant that the excellent proposal by the Hornsey Town Hall Trust was carelessly cast aside. The only thing that prevented the council from flogging this jewel of a public building was the impressive Grade II STAR listing plus a public outcry. As it is, they still want to flog the large disused car park behind it to property developers - and yet Crouch End is really short of open space right where the car park is. Why not make it a green park?
Our charity trust Alexandra Palace is equally unloved by the council and Haringey got incredibly close to flogging it to the developer-of-last-resort (Firoka) who may now commence litigation against the council. AP is bound up with Charity and Trust law and is a more complicated proposition altogether. Some think that this is an easy matter to just pop it into community control but it will be another long and hard battle - to change the Trusteeship. Haringey always think they know best and will resist any transfer.
It's a bit like the Suez intervention where the British Government thought the Egyptians could never be trusted to run something so important as the Suez Canal. Haringey always does the right thing in the end ... after having exhausted every possible alternative!
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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OK, I have the answer to this question now. This from another source about the same story:
In Haringey, under the "Making the Difference" scheme, now in its fourth year, seven local authority assemblies are allocated £50,000 each. Local people or groups propose funding ideas for one-off projects to a maximum of £10,000, which can be matched with other grants. Residents have the opportunity to express their preferences at area assembly meetings.
Councillor Lorna Reith, Haringey Cabinet Member for Community Involvement, said: "Local people usually know best about where money should be spent in their area, and our 'Making the Difference' scheme shows that even small amounts of money can make a huge difference.
"The opportunity to get more involved in determining spending at local level has proved hugely popular, with the added benefit of bringing local people together to improve their area."
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Permalink Reply by matt on
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And here's what The Community Assets Programme has been trying to achieve so far. Scroll down the linked page to see the Boroughs/Districts & community organisations currently involved.
Are there any disused/under utilized council buildings available within Harringay? Probably not.
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